One of New Jersey’s most prominent defense lawyers, Paul Bergrin, was arrested earlier this year on charges that included conspiring to arrange the murder of key witness of his clients. A bail reduction motion and request for home detention filed by the ex Union County Prosecutor was later denied by the Federal Judge presiding over the case. Things continued the same course yesterday when members of the US attorneys office informed the Judge that they were looking to file cocaine related charges against Bergrin stemming from approximately 120 pounds of cocaine found as a result of a post arrest search warrant. One can only anticipate an indictment for possesssion with intent to distribute cocaine to follow if the allegations made against the former Union County Defense Lawyer prove accurate.
The tenacity and toughness of this lawyer was something that was obvious to me over the years of my Union County criminal defense practice. His no nonsense – military type approach was something that was hard to ignore. This attitude apparently was not an act if the allegations of law enforcement are accurate. Indeed, this lawyer is claimed to have resorted to the most extreme behavior – murder – to see that his clients prevailed. I would have to say that this attorney took the oath of zealous advocacy to an extreme.
